Review: The Audacity of Hope

First and foremost, Barack Obama is an eloquent writer.There's nothing clunky or unpleasant about the words in this book, and in fact Obama does a striking job of bringing politics to life. In this volume he lays out his ideas on (these are all chapter titles): Values, Our Constitution, Politics, Opportunity, Faith, Race, The World Beyond Our Borders, and Family. Each chapter is bookended and dotted with anecdotes from Obama's life, whether it be his childhood, his courtship and subsequent marriage to his wife Michelle, his family life with his daughters, campaign tales, or stories straight from the Senate floor. He addresses tough, harrowing issues that most Americans (and the world) are concerned about in this trying contemporary moment, and he seems to address the issues with a sense of frankness that is instantly likeable. Perhaps one of myfavorite parts about Senator Obama and this book in particular is his willingness to address the grey area surrounding these issues--that no matter which party you belong to there isn't an easy "either/or"answer, but instead we have to weigh options, be willing to converse about the issues, and forge a path that will yield the most payoff for the country at large.

4 comments:

It sounds interesting and I keep catching snippets of him talking on television and I can actually listen and think and not have to work my way through a smokescreen. It's okay, I've adjusted my tv now.

You know, I didn't get to see that speech! I heard about the hoopla afterwards, and I've read it, but I need to stream it sometime so I can witness the greatness first hand. I have such a crush on him. hehe